Abstract
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has been tasked from its inception with protecting its members from threats posed by the Warsaw Pact countries, primarily the USSR. However, in the 1990s, its role underwent significant modifications. The normative aspect of its mission, particularly concerning the support of democracy, became increasingly prominent. The Alliance thus transformed from a traditional regional security organization into a security community. This transformation became most evident in countries that were previously considered adversaries of NATO – in Central and Eastern Europe. The purpose of this article is to trace this evolution and identify which aspects of democracy are supported by the Alliance and how. The Eastern Partnership countries – Ukraine, Georgia, and Armenia – were chosen as case studies.
Funding
This study has been funded by the European Union (European Research Executive Agency; 101059811). However, the views and opinions expressed are solely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of the European Union or the European Research Executive Agency (REA). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
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